Sailing Ships
by Lady Edyleen
Summary: Arthur and Antonio take up opposite sides of the sea, both inheriting their father's mantles. Broken childhoods and old wounds are determined to be brought back by fate, with one stray person in both their lives desperate to find identity.
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter One _

He could remember what had come to pass three years ago as clearly in his mind as if it were just yesterday, or moments ago. He closed his eyes - he could see Alice's green eyes, much like his own. He pulled a pillow over his head - her voice still rung in his ears. He gripped his hands to keep his own fingers from twitching so much; he felt her fingers twined with his.  
>He could remember the grey skies signaling the storm no one saw coming. Remember people's screams, Lianna repeatedly crying for them being separated by the people; the first time he picked up a sword; the weathered hands that separated him from his sister; the rain on the deck that washed the blood away; Vincent's face when he tried hiding his tears, the sound of his trembling voice, his face when he drew Lianna away and finally, Lianna's quiet, quiet voice as she told them: Alice was gone.<br>It was dark; no one wanted to talk about it, no one wanted to miss her but they all did. No one had the strength to stay in charge; Iain was too busy rebelling and Vincent was too depressed to try. He had to take up the house, as was his right - and it started with this last thing.  
>He looked into the distance, facing the open sea but not looking at the waves; his eyes were trained at the ships with the mighty sails headed to shore.<p>

Antonio hung his sword, realizing for a moment how symbolic the moment was. He would be seeing his uncle for the first time. His father, having died when he was a little child, had once ruled the seas; once he was gone his uncle had taken up his father's mantle. And he would be invited upon his father's ship.

Later that day, he walked up into the big ship, wood and sails as big as clouds. With some difficulty he lifted himself up onto the deck, the only still thing in a sea of people preparing for a long journey. He looked around warily, but still curiously.  
>"Ah! The captain's nephew!" He jerked his head sharply to the source of the voice. That was it – he would be meeting his uncle.<br>That was when something barreled into him. It was all too fast, and he hit the floor, his reflexes unable to take action, and the next thing he knew was green eyes, staring into his. She mumbled something in a foreign tongue, and then checked herself, her long dark hair running over her bare shoulder. He felt his face grow hot at the sight of her pale skin, stuttering. "S-sen…"  
>She followed his gaze, and roughly yanked her sleeve up, pouting petulantly, not bothering to move from her position of all fours above him, staring him down. He swallowed.<br>"Querida Rosa, deja de intimidar mi sobrino!" A friendly but strong voice called out.  
>She didn't turn, she stood up and brushed her white cotton dress down, the exposed skin of her throat, collar bone and arms up to her elbows sparkling off his vision in the sunlight. She looked back at the owner of the voice with an eyebrow raised.<br>"Bienvenida, Antonio. Bienvenida."

_Merci beaucoup for reading~ Hetalia or Arthur or Alice don't belong to me, neither does Antonio. But I wish he did. This is a continuation to a previous fanfiction I never finished, but the plot is the similar, just written better. Well, at least I hope so. Feedback is love, requests welcomed. _


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Why are you so mean?" Antonio asked Rosa. She shrugged, frowning.

"Why don't you ever talk?" This time she twitched, obviously annoyed, and gave him a dirty look instead. He sighed. He didn't know much about her; just that his uncle treated her special, like a relative. All he received was a brief excuse about her being his dead right man's daughter, and in any case, that meant he had to spend at least some time with her. But how could he, when she never even spoke to him?

"Come on! Are you threatened because I'm his nephew? As in an actual blood relative? I don't think he'd treat you any less special because I'm here-"

He should really have kept his mouth shut, because in a moment the bucket she threw hit him square in the face, and he fell to the floor, surprised, a hand cupping his red cheek.

He looked up, surprised to see her face red, tears dripping down her cheeks as she held a chair, warning him to stay down. He watched her dark hair flutter around her face as she shouted at him in a frustrated voice.

"N-no… Habl-hablas… Espanol!"

She dropped the chair, and ran out of the room, leaving him to nurse his cheek.

"What is this."

Iain was glaring at him from across the desk. "I leave you alone for a week. A week. Tell me, can I even trust you? I come back to find that you've signed a treaty with these pirates?"

Arthur simply scoffed, looking to the side, relaxing in the red chair. "There's nothing wrong with these 'pirates', brother. Father was dealing with them before he died."

"And his cause of death, yes? And Ali-"

He stopped dead, and an uncomfortable silence took over the room. He could see his other older siblings by the door, Vincent at the wall looking down at his shoes.

He looked up sharply, once he heard Arthur's calm but cold voice, somehow willing him to meet his eyes.

"Do not forget, it was my name Father put in his will to take over. Don't forget who's in charge."

He stood up, eye to eye with his brother. He had grown, shot up in the short time, and Iain couldn't believe he hadn't noticed it.

Arthur stayed that way, before turning around and walking away.

"Wait. Arthur." Iain managed to choke out.  
>Arthur stopped, but didn't turn.<br>"What are you going to do.. with those Pirates?"  
>"I didn't just sign a treaty with them – we have an agreement."<br>"Agreement?"  
>He could feel the smile on Arthur's face, eerily even without him turning. It was some sort of forced cheer that didn't sound good at all.<br>"Yes. I'm leaving with them, once I am ready. And I've just decided-I am."

**Thanks for reading! Antonio, Arthur, Alice, Iain, Vincent, and everyone else, Hetalia, do not belong to me. Feedback is love, and so is reading. Merci encore~**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: Fireflies

Things were good. They'd hit shore, and collected what they were supposed to collect. The landing party had set up camp not far as they headed farther inland, but he was out for his own personal mission.  
>He hadn't given up in his efforts to make friends with Rosa, and his uncle had supported the friendship. He wondered sometimes why she couldn't speak Spanish; what else did she speak? But he was the only one who talked, and lately she'd been going along with letting him teach her the language.<br>_"Si, and this is a mariposa." He drew a butterfly on the dusty floor, and she blinked, nodding furiously. "I…"  
><em>She'd looked away for a minute, before deciding that it didn't matter and asked him to show her one. He'd laughed and told her that there weren't any on the ship. Now that he was on land, he was on a mission, with a jar on hand to find a butterfly for Rosa. Turning to the side, by the trees, he saw couple of fireflies.  
>Maybe he could teach her what the word was for those, too.<p>

Arthur fell to the wooden floor, wiping blood off of his lip. "Have at ye, Master Arthur, or ye'll never stand a real chance in combat!" the pirate captain waved his big blade over Arthur's head. "Come on!"  
>With a grunt, Arthur pushed himself off the floor and struck above, the strike blocked by his adversary. He dodged one meant for his legs, twisted and in the end he had the tip of his blade square on the throat of a man decades his senior.<br>"How was I, sir?"  
>The pirate captain smiled, one of his gold teeth glinting in the sunlight.<br>"That'll do, lad. Come, I need to show you something." He sheathed his sword and turned to the captain's quarters. Curious, Arthur did the same and followed.  
>The captain had large, previously rolled up pieces of parchment and leather stretched out on his desk. "This is a map of the known world, a collection, ye might say, of places we've explored and only heard of. Now here, is where our seas, meet the Spanish seas."<br>Arthur's eyes darkened, but returned to their original state, not lost to the pirate.  
>"If they dare cross that border, aye, it's up to us or some other buccaneer to blow them off our territory!" He smiled and raised a dagger, as if to rejoice for a fight.<br>"As it is, some of their ships have been seen to cross that border. Hear me, lad? They've crossed it. As it happens we're the closest to their ships."  
>Arthur swallowed, looking up at the older man's face. "What does this mean?"<br>The older man smiled, slapping him hard on the back – Arthur had to push on the table to keep from smacking into it.  
>"Get ready for your first skirmish, my boy."<p>

_**Wee bit awkward to try writing in a pirate accent and be all 'arr'… but aye, I hafta admit it's a lot entertaining to me, and hopefully entertaining to yer lot, as well! Okay, you may kill me now.**_

_**Anyway. Arthur, the Spanish, Rosa, Antonio, his uncle, the butterflies and fireflies, Hetalia(basis) don't belong to me. Thank you so much for reading. It's a given, but they were speaking Spanish at the first part, even when it was in English. Just imagine it was translated because I speak no more Spanish than como esta, and I'm not even sure that's right. Adios. **_


	4. And Then Fire

"This is wrong, this is wrong, this is wrong!" Antonio's uncle stood tall amidst the panic on deck. "Ship... Pirates... There were not supposed to be any ships!"

Arthur stood by the mast, watching his adversaries on the other ship. The pirate captain was giving his men orders, and Arthur stood ready.  
>Ready to taste blood.<p>

"Rosa, Rosa, where are you?" Antonio's voice was strained with worry, wading through the sea of panicking people and Spanish curses. Upon the sounding of the alarm, and the activity on deck his thoughts were filled with his uncle's charge. English ships, they said, English ships. Just like the ones that killed his father.

The canons were out, and dealt minimal damage to both ships. Arthur stood as the boats became parallel, and planks from both ships were lowered. The fighting could begin. He saw men from both sides strapping daggers unsheathing swords, ready for battle. "Master, stay-"  
>The pirate captain's words were drowned as men began to spill into each other's ships. Arthur was pushed onto a plank by someone behind him, eager to invade the Spanish ship. A Spaniard looked up at him, trying to get past, swinging blindly with his sword. His eyes locked with Arthur's, noting he was just a boy.<br>A boy who had learned to fight.  
>With an expert flick of his wrist, Arthur pushed the man off into the sea below them and charged.<p>

Blood. She'd seen blood before. Blood that proved she was a woman. Blood from fishes that had been gutted, before they were washed, cooked, and eaten. And the blood of men.  
>The entire ship was in a panic, the clash of blades and curses so strong that no one noticed her with her back against the wall. And she noticed no one.<br>The smell of blood was strong in the air, permeating the smell of the sea. Her fingers curled against the wood as she inhaled. The smell was familiar, terrifying, intoxicating. She was shaken out of her reverie by the captain, calling her name. "Run. Run to safety, to your room, go!"  
>She nodded, and made her way around the clashing blades to darkness. Antonio rushed over, saw her retreating figure, and hurried back to the frontlines.<br>And green eyes locked on green.

They fought differently - nonetheless, both exceptional. No one drew blood, and both became frustrated. They were in their own world. Antonio concentrated on dodging his adversary's blows, and Arthur gritted his teeth, pushing forward, trying to land a blow. Antonio saw an opening, and struck.  
>He barely nicked his enemy's arm, but he could barely meet the anger that flashed in his eyes.<br>And then he heard the scream.

It was his uncle's name, and he dodged a spiteful slash meant for his shoulder to run. He saw it; his uncle was standing in victory against the pirate ship's captain. He was poised to cheer when he saw the blade that impaled itself on his uncle's back.  
>And then fire.<p> 


End file.
